The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-11-12
AN IRISH LEGEND.
THE Dwarf of the Red Bog and His
GO den Ornaments.
Etom Donal.oe's MdqdEine


In a lonesome part of Ireland stands
GREAT dark mountain blue as a wall of sap
,,bire and with a crest like an eagles beak.
Under it is a small stone cabin surrounded
with a fringe of green. Wild, black bog
land lies beyond, slIirted by a strip of deep
.ad hog. which looks as warm in the sun
shine as if it were gold mine.
little Mary, who lived in the cabin, had
been so starved ever since she was born that
she had given up trying to grow. Her small
face was as white as the blossom OF the bog
cotton. and her body was almost as thin as
tbe slender stem from which it swings in the
Lreeze There were eight children in the
cahin Younger than Mary, and they all stood
ronnd y noggin of milk which Mary had just
MIXED from the cow.
nGiye me a tint for the baby said the
mother. land carry the rest to poor old Bid
at the back of the bog. She's sick children,
and the rest of us are on our feet"
The children left off gazing at the milk and
Mary ran Off with the noggin as fast us she
could without splitting it.
She had lust got to the black bog where
the red one joins it, when she saw very
Strange figure squatting on the ground--a
dwarf with his Sort arms thrown up as if
IN save himself from falling backward and
Nth a most peculiar expression on his coun-
tenance. 4 cry seemed to come from him
and. putting down her noggin, Mary ran to
his assistance; but when she came close to
the figure she found it was nothing but a
Great lump Of bogwood that had been I'M
cortpd out of the bog. With wild laugh
and a half-frightened glance over her Shout
der, she picked up her noggin again and
hurried on her way.
Bids only son was miles off looking for
work and the bed-ridden creature was alone,
except when angel messengers like Mary
came and ministered to her.
Mother says she's afeared it is the last
time, Bid" said the child; 'for the cows
going. and we'll all be on the road, maybe.
before the month is out.
1.-THE Lord forbld!n said the old woman,
when she mad moistened her lips. May He
send you the rent up ont of the earth or
down out of the sky, you that have kept the
neighbor out Of the poorhouse.
The dusk was darkening the purple noun
tain. and the moon scudding wild and bright
through clouds and mists, when little Mary,
fying like a gull, stopped, poised on her toe
and stood gazing once more at the dwarf
like figure squatting forlornly on the very
edge Of the red bog. This time there was
no mistake about the matter The stump
of bogwood was gone and the strange figure
was throwing up his arms frantically to at
tract the little lnaidenS attention. A plover
gave weird cry at the same moment and
the dwarf cried out:
"Help me up! oh, help me up! The awlz-
ward fellows have left me in soft place and
] am sinkingw
Mary walked up on her tiptoes and looked
at the dwarf His eyes were quite crooked
with excitement in his fiat face and his
short, stiff legs were stuck fast in the red
bog.
'Get me over to the black bog, which is
harder he said land then | shall be all
right. l don't want to sink back into the
earth again." Mary took hold of his short,
outstretched arms with both her little hands
and rugged as well as she was able. After
several attempts she got him pulled out of
the swampy ground and trundled him over
on the hard, black peat, where he lay pant
ing for several minutes an blinking his ex-
traordinary eyes up at the moon.
Il hope you are more comfortable now,
sir" said Mary, with a courtesy.
Perfectly comfortable. And now, my
dear, put your hands in my pockets and
take out what you can find. It's only an
meumbrance to me after all these centuries.
And it will pay your rent. Did you ever
hear of gold"
No, sir" said Mary.
Put your hands into my pockets, then, u
said the dwarf
after another quantity of beautiful shining
yellow things, brooches, collars and other
curious ornaments of ancient Irish times,
and she gathered them into the skirt of her
petticOat
Now, run fast" said the dwarf, ''for I
want to go on looking at the moon.
havn't seen the face of a moon for don't
know how many centuries. Often 1T shone
on me when was giant instead of dwarf
and had a crown of leaves on my head and
singing birds flying all around me. Tell
your father that the heroes who gave me
these gold things to keep will never ask
them back again from him. They pass me
sometimes marching across the bogland at
dead of night, lamenting for the woods that
are gone; but they are all flashing in Splen-
doris no w and have no need of such tTumpery
as these. Your father can sell the gold and
buy any number of pigs ard cows"
Then the dwarf gave such an extraordi-
nary yawn, and rolled his ewes so frightfully
at the moon that little Mary turned and fled
without as much as saying "thank you.
When she reached home she emptied the
gold ornaments into her fathers lap and
told him her adventure exactly as it had
happened to her.
''The child had gone mad with hunger, :"
cried Mary's mother, clasping her hands.
But the father put the gold things into a
sack and did not fail to sell them instead OF
the COW.
When the whole family went in the morn
ing to look for the good-natured dwarf they
found nothing but huge stump of bog
wood lying in particularly awkward atti-
tude on the edge of the red bog, just where
1t had been unearthed several days before
Where the dwarf S pockets had been the c
were deep round holes. Somebody said that
the stump had once been tree in mighty
forest, and that the warriors of ancient Ire
land often hung their golden collars and
armlets on the branches of trees while they
rested under the shade. OF course, that
does not quite clear up little Mary's mys
terry; but anybody can see the gold orna
ments in the Royal Irish Academy.
A SANE MAN LEGALLY INSANE.